Norwegian-born immigrant John Gibson arrived in the Clarks Fork Valley at the turn of the twentieth century and soon opened brickyards in Fromberg and nearby Belfry. He became one of the area’s most prominent contractors, constructing Fromberg’s first brick building, the I.O.O.F. Hall, in 1906. After a competitor supplanted his company in 1909, he established a small concrete plant adjacent to this property and began manufacturing concrete block for building construction, sidewalk blocks, drain tile, flue liners, and fenceposts. By the 1910s, his patented culvert design was acclaimed the best on the market, and in 1914 he supplied the concrete for construction of the Fromberg Concrete Arch Bridge. Around 1909, to promote the use of concrete and demonstrate its viability in residential construction, he built his own home of concrete block next to the factory, making it unique in Fromberg. He later enlarged the home and in 1929 remodeled it with Craftsman style detailing, including a gable-roofed front porch, extended eaves with exposed rafters, concrete lug sills, and stucco with an unusual mixture of rock and colored glass that showed his exceptionally fine craftsmanship.